Secrets Untold
by berriesncream
Summary: Ella seems to be normal but she has a life that no one knows about. What will it take for Ella to reveal her deep, dark secrets?
1. Chapter 1

The story opens in a beautifully built mansion

_The story opens in a beautifully built mansion. Ella, her father, and her stepmother live inside. _

Ella was normal. She had a normal life, and she lived like a normal rich person, or so she wishes. Everyday, she would wake up and sit by her stepmother's bedside so that she wouldn't wake with a dry and sore throat. Every morning she filled a cup with water and left it by her bedside. Then, she would have to go to her father's room, on the other side of the mansion. As she did everyday, she would wake him up and lay out his business attire: a collared shirt, a solid-colored tie, and dress pants. Only then could she go back to her own room to change into her school clothes. However, it wasn't that easy. She had to dress quickly so that she would be able to have breakfast ready for her father and stepmother. Then she would have to polish her father's dress shoes so that he didn't have to go to work as a disgrace and a shame.

"Dad, wake up. It's time for work." Ella said, shaking him gently. Her father grunted and rolled over, ignoring her. "Dad, come on, you have to wake up now. You have to go to work, remember?"

Her dad groaned and sat up. "Damn it, Ella, why do you have to interrupt my sleep?! Do you realize how long I worked last night??"  
"Yes, I know, Dad, but you have to go to work."

"Are you being smart with me, young lady?? You know my rules about being smart with me. I'm the boss of this house and if I'm not home, then you obey your stepmother. Do you understand??"

"Yes, dad."

"Good. Now get your useless self out of here and make me some breakfast. Don't forget to give Helen her water."

"I won't, Dad. I never forget."

"Do I hear an attitude?? I don't want anyone in this house giving me attitude, do you hear me??"

"Yes, Dad. I'm sorry."

"Well, are you going to stand there all day and gawk or are you going to do something useful for once and make sure we don't starve?!"

"I'm going to make some breakfast now, Dad. I'm sorry I took so long."

Ella left the room and went to her stepmother's room. Everyday she had to deal with this torture. She had to admit to crimes that she never committed. She had to lie to her dad's boss whenever her dad lost his temper. She reached her stepmother's door and knocked softly. When no one answered, she went in. "Helen, wake up. You need to drink some water."

Helen's reaction was the same as her father's. "Go away, you useless brat. Can't you see that I'm trying to sleep??"

"Yes, I know, Helen, but you wouldn't want to become dehydrated because then you will get a sore throat and it will be very irritating. It will be too late by then and I would be in school so I wouldn't be here to take care of you."

"Then I'll have Arthur drag you out of class so that you can take care of your poor old stepmother."

"But my education is very important! Without education, I'll never get anywhere in life!"

"So you would rather go to some damn school and let your stepmother DIE??"

"No, that's not what I said, Helen. I just said that I need my education and that you can't be dragging me out of class just because you have a little sore throat."

"Little sore throat?? Is that what you call it?? It's not just a _little_ sore throat. What if it kills me, huh? When that happens, who's going to take the blame?? Oh, I know what the neighbors will think. They'll say, 'that stupid old lady. Why didn't she drink more water?' but it would be all your fault because you failed to sacrifice your education so that you can save your poor stepmother's life."

"But I bring you your cup of water everyday so that you can drink it."

"Any more lip from you and I'll knock some sense into you!"

"Alright, Helen. I'm sorry, Helen. It won't happen again."

"Good. Now get your ass out of here because I can't stand you anymore."

Ella left the room and sighed. She hated her life with a passion. She wished that some miracle would happen in her life so that she could ease this pain. She had five minutes to change for school before she had to rush downstairs to make breakfast for everyone. She made bacon and eggs for her father and Helen, but she knew that she wouldn't be able to eat any because her father's rule of "you're not good enough to eat like us" applied strictly to her. So she had cereal and milk instead. Quickly she polished her father's shoes and caught the bus that would take her to school. She looked forward to going to school. To her it was like a mini-paradise. At least the people in school wouldn't torture her the way her father and stepmother tortured her.

_**Just so you know…**_

_**Helen is Ella's stepmother.**_

_**Arthur is Ella's father.**_

_**Ella is in high school and she's in 10**__**th**__** grade. **_


	2. Chapter 2

She walked into school without attracting too much attention

She walked into school without attracting too much attention. When she went to her locker, her best friend, Allison, was already there.

"Hey Ella!" Allison greeted with enthusiasm.

"Oh, hi Ally." Ella replied as she unlocked her locker.

"How's life?"

"Oh, you know…normal." Ella replied carefully. She didn't want Allison to get even the slightest of hints as to what her life out of school was really like. Even though Ally was her best friend, it was something that she chose to hide. There was no way that she could bring herself to tell anyone about the way she suffered at home.

"Well, at least you have a normal life. My life is boring as hell. All I do is sit at home, watch a little TV, go on the computer and deal with my stupid little brother."

Ella smiled politely, but inwardly, she wished she could trade lives with Ally. _If only you knew what my 'normal' life is, you wouldn't be wishing for my life, Ally. You should be counting your blessings that your family doesn't do this to you._ Out loud, Ella changed the subject. "So did we have any homework in math class?" Ella didn't even need to ask such a stupid question. Ella always got her homework done since her father always demanded so much out of her.

"Yeah, I think we had a worksheet to do or something. This isn't like you, Ella. You usually always have the homework done. Are you sure everything's alright in your life?"

"Yeah, don't worry about it. I just didn't get enough sleep. That's all. Lack of sleep always makes me feel a little out of it, if you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I hate that feeling." Ally replied. _There's something about her that I don't know. I can just tell. Ella never suffers from lack of sleep. She never picks up her phone after 10 at night, which means she's asleep by then. But why would Ella lie to me, her best friend? We've been friends for 3 years, and we've been through thick and thin together. So why do I get the feeling that Ella's making up a lie?_

"Well, we better get to class." Ella interrupted Ally's thoughts and suspicions.

"Yeah, that's a good idea. We wouldn't want to show up late. I'll see you later."

"Alright. Bye."

As Ella was walking to her next class, a really popular and obnoxious kid came running down the hallway at full speed and before Ella could move aside, he knocked into her and her books tumbled from her hand to the floor. She heard people laughing behind her as she bent to pick the books up. She tried to ignore them. She had been through worse at home to be bothered by this. This was minor compared to what she had to deal with at home.

"Nice one, Paul!" Someone shouted.

"Yeah, you really got her. Just look at that pathetic little nerd. She cares too much for school." Added another voice.

Ella took a deep breath and didn't turn around.

"Hey, you!" Someone yelled.

_Don't turn around. Just keep walking, don't look back, and don't say anything. They're just trying to mess with your head. _

But the yelling and calling of her name didn't stop. "Hey, you! Wait! Slow down, would ya?"

Ella refused to stop or slow down. She was almost to her classroom anyway. Once she stepped into that classroom, she would be safe from those obnoxious jerks.

"Hey!" The person didn't stop following her. "I don't know your name, but I know that you can hear me, so will you please just stop and wait up? Stop making me feel like a complete idiot yelling down the hallway without a reply!"

Still, Ella just walked closer and closer to her classroom. She didn't need some guy messing up her life or screwing things up worse than things already were. She finally reached her classroom and quickly stepped inside, closing the door behind her. She heard the faint voice of her new stalker. "Damn you, girl! All I wanted to do was talk, and this is what you do!"

Luckily for her, she wasn't late, so no one asked questions and no one stared at her as if she had grown another head. _Thank God I didn't have to go through any trouble with that weird kid. Who knows what he would have done? I don't exactly buy his excuse of just wanting to 'talk' to me._ Ella sat down and took out her work and tried to look normal.

The period seemed to drag on for a long time. When the bell finally rang, Ella was one of the first people to rush out the door. On her way to her next class that same person followed her again. "I'm not going to let you get away from me this time, girl! You better stop right there so we can talk!"

Ella groaned and walked faster towards the heavy mass of people, hoping to lose the person. _Why does he insist on following me? He should know by now that there's nothing he can do to make me stop and turn back, especially not after he publicly humiliated me in front of his obnoxious friends. _

Her plan worked. The guy apparently wasn't able to find her and had given up on trying to find her. Sighing with relief, she went to her next period class.

"So you thought you could lose me in that crowd, did you?" The unfortunately familiar voice trailed after her.

_Come on, boy! Haven't you taken the hint yet? You humiliated me, you laughed along with your friends when you made me drop my books, and now you expect me to turn around and pretend as if nothing ever happened?! _Ella said nothing and didn't turn around. She saw Allison in the distance and hope flooded through her. "Ally!" Ella called. She waved her hand in the air to attract her attention. Allison saw her and waved back.

"Oh no you don't. I'm not going to have something like this happen. I'm going to talk to you before your little friend will."

Before Ella could get a grip on what was going on, she felt someone grab her elbow just as Allison approached. "Get off of her, you asshole!" Allison snapped. She pulled Ella out of the other person's grasp.

"You just got lucky." The guy mumbled. Ella turned around for a first glimpse of her stalker. But she turned around to late. She only saw the back of his head.

"Who was that?" Allison asked.

"Honestly, I have no idea. He's just some jerk that knocked the books out of my hand this morning and I think he did it on purpose because he never bothered apologizing. I'm having a funny feeling that he's just one of those 'popular' kids that think they're cool when they humiliate people that aren't as 'popular' as they are."

"Yeah, I think so too. But he sounded and looked pretty pissed off when I jumped in."

"I don't care. He doesn't deserve anything good in his life. If he's going to try to pretend that nothing happened, he can go ahead with his little fantasy. But there's absolutely no way that I'm going to stoop so low that I'm going to play along."

"Yeah, you have a point. Now, let's hurry to class. We've only got two minutes before our teacher gives us detention for being late."

"I know, and you're right. We're going to have to walk pretty fast, though."

"Ha! I can run twice as fast as you can!"

"Whatever. The point is, we just have to get to class before the bell rings. Now quit wasting time and start walking!"

Ella and Allison hurried along to class, but little did they know that Ella's stalker was watching them before going to class.


	3. Chapter 3

The bell for the period finally rang and Allison and Ella left the classroom in a hurry

The bell for the period finally rang and Allison and Ella left the classroom in a hurry.

"That was so boring! All she does is review, review, and review. Then, after she's done reviewing, she somehow goes off topic. Man, am I glad to get out of that class!" Allison expressed her opinion out loud.

"Yeah, I know. We learned that stuff back in like 7th grade, didn't we? It was a lot more fun back then than with this boring old teacher. I can't believe she's making us feel as if we were 7th graders instead of mature, grown-up 10th graders."

"Yeah, even my math teacher treats us like we're mature. But this teacher, she must think we're in kindergarten or something because our grades are so easy to bring up."

"Don't jinx us, Ally. Maybe some day, by some supernatural force of nature, she'll realize what a terribly easy teacher she is and make it super hard to pass her class."

"Yeah, but I doubt that's happening anytime soon."

"True." Ella and Allison enjoyed a good laugh before Allison had to leave. Ella walked to her next class alone.

"I don't understand why you insist on avoiding me." The stalker was back, but this time, he'd trapped her in a hallway with a dead end.

Ella turned around and realized that he had been following her. There was no way to avoid him now. He had been planning this with a lot of care, and he knew that Allison had left her some time ago.

"Listen, I have to get to class, and I don't feel like being late. So if you would please step out of my way, I'll be on my way to class." Ella said coldly.

"Yeah, well maybe we wouldn't be in this situation if you had just turned around this morning when I was calling you."

"I don't know if you remember, but you humiliated me in front of you friends. You knocked the books out of my hand, and at first I thought maybe it was just an accident but then I heard your friends laughing their heads off and complimenting you on how well you humiliated me. So I know that what happened was on purpose. Don't even try to lie to me."

"Hey, I'm not denying any of that. I just thought that maybe we can just forget about that and start from scratch. I'm Paul, by the way."

"Yes, I know. Your friends did mention your name earlier this morning." _Man, can't he just leave me alone? He knows that I don't want anything to do with him._

"Well, I just wanted to confirm that." _Why is she so pissed off at me? Sure, I knocked a few books out of her hand, but I didn't mean to hurt her feelings. What was it that she said? Oh yeah, I humiliated her. It wasn't that bad. People do things like that on a daily basis._ "I don't get why you're so mad at me. All I want to do is talk." _I can just tell that this girl is one to hold grudges and if I'm not careful, I might land up on her hate list._

"Well, I don't know how clear your logic is, but in case you didn't know, when someone is humiliated, they don't usually take it lightly."

"Look, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings or anything. I just wanted to pull a little joke. I meant it to be funny for everybody, including you."

"Wait a second. Just let me get this straight. You thought that it was possible that I would take the public humiliation as a joke?"

"I know it sounds really stupid, but it's true, and at that time, it seemed logical enough." _Now that she mentions it, it does sound really stupid. Man, I shouldn't have let Dan and Richard talk me into this. _

"I don't know what mental illness you're suffering from, but it must be severe because in all my life I've never met someone who thought that humiliating someone without bothering to apologize would be considered a joke and a friendly way of teasing. I'm sorry, but you've got to see a doctor and get a test on your cerebral area."

"Man, if you thought that I'm mean, you should hear yourself."

"Good, now you know exactly what I felt. No, I think you feel only a mild version of what I felt. Why don't you try to imagine this? You're just innocently walking down the hallway to your class and you're minding your own business. All of a sudden, someone comes rushing down the hall at full speed, knocking the books out of your hand and putting a loose hold on your balance so that you stagger a little bit. Meanwhile, hundreds of students are staring at you, snickering and saying things like 'that little sucker. She should have moved out of the way' and there's people behind you laughing their heads off and having fun at your expense. Can you even begin to imagine the anger that must have been building inside of you?" With each word, her tone became sharper and sharper.

Paul listened in silence. _Wow, she sounds really mad. I must have pissed her off big time if her tone is this bad. I didn't realize the anger that I had ignited in her. Now, it seems as if I've fanned those sparks of anger into a huge flame of rage. I better watch I'm saying from this point on before anything bad happens. All I wanted to do was just see if she was still mad and then maybe talk her into a more peaceful state of mind. Now I feel so bad. The next time I see Dan and Richey, I'm going to give them a piece of my mind. They're always picking me to do things that might get me in trouble. But I must admit, sometimes it's fun. This experience was kind of fun. But now, I regret it. _He looked into her hurt eyes and looked away. "I didn't realize the pain that I've caused. I guess you really can't realize the effect of your actions until you put yourself in the victim's position. I know that if I were put in your position, I would absolutely hate the jerk that caused me so much humiliation. I would be pretty mad if that person didn't apologize. I don't know if it'll mean anything to you now, but I'm sorry."

"No you're not. You're just saying you're sorry because you want me to calm down. Trust me, I've met many people like you in my life and I know from experience that what comes out of your mouth is complete bullshit." _He's a waste of my time. I'm not one to get mad easily, considering my situation at home, but he seriously gets on my nerve. I'm hoping this is the last time that I'll have to deal with this obnoxious jerk._

Paul didn't say anything. For the first time ever, he had nothing to say. He usually was full of insults, but this time he didn't have anything to say. "Well, I guess I'm a waste of your time. Besides, I just ate up a whole minute of your time to get to class." He stepped out of the way so that she could just move on. "I guess I'll be seeing you later." He said, forcing himself to smile tightly.

"I hope not, but I'm sure we'll pass each other in the hallways."

"Yeah, I guess so. But I'm guessing we won't talk much?"

"Of course not! Why would you even think of something like that. Just use your logic. Why would some really obnoxious, rude, popular kid want to spend time with a lowly unpopular kid?"

"But that's not what I think of you! I know you don't care about what I say and I know that no matter what I say, you'll consider me just some jerk who likes to go around messing with people's emotions, but I want to make one thing clear. The one thing that I would never do is categorize someone as unpopular. Maybe my friends do it on a daily basis, but everybody that I see or talk to is my equal. Well, maybe a little less than equal, but not unpopular. Never would I use the word unpopular." It was Paul's turn to snap. _I just can't stand that automatic judgment. I know that it's what people do all the time, but I would never stoop so low as to call someone unpopular. Dan and Richey don't realize how mean they're being when they clump people in a social hierarchy._

Without another word, Paul turned around and left. Ella was flooded with a sense of relief. _I guess I won't have to be dealing with him any time soon. _


	4. Chapter 4

Paul walked quickly to class with angry thoughts buzzing in his mind

Paul walked quickly to class with angry thoughts buzzing in his mind. _Wow, and she was complaining about how mean __**I **__was?! She should have heard herself talk! How could she possibly put me in the same group as Dan and Richey?! Yeah, we're friends, but that doesn't mean she has to go and put me in the same group as them. I'm different from them. I'm nicer and I can sympathize with people, unlike those two lazy bums who care for no one but themselves. The next time I see her, I'll keep in mind that she isn't as nice as she seems or sounds. _

Meanwhile, Dan was hurrying towards him with his arm raised for a high five. "Hey! What's up, man? Nice job this morning, you know, with that no good unpopular little girl?"

Paul forgot about how much he hated Marie for the minute and his anger was redirected to Dan. "Yeah, I guess so. But if it was that awesome, maybe next time **you** should be the one who pulls that sort of dirty nonsense."

"Whoa man, why are you so mad at **me** for?! I didn't do anything wrong to you! We do things like that all the time and you never complained about it before! So why do you choose to speak against it now?!"

"Well, maybe because it just dawned on me that the only one doing these so called pranks is me! On top of that, whenever someone catches me in the act, I don't rat you guys out. I say it's all my fault and it was all my idea just to cover you guys up. I tell the principal and teachers a whole pack of lies just for you and Richey. But I don't get anything back. This is the thanks I get for all that I've done for you two?! If that's what you call fair, then I'm out of this group!"

Dan stood still for a while. _No, he can't leave this group! I know that he's the one that always gets blamed, but I can't let good old Richard to do the dirty work. We had a deal. Plus, he's paying me not to make him do things like that. Of course there's no way that I can do it because I just can't risk my good boy reputation. I can't believe Dan has us wrapped around his finger so tightly._ "Dude, you can't just drop out of our group, Paul. Don't you realize that you're a vital part of this little groupie? We need you to be in so that our rep isn't spoiled."

"What 'rep' are you talking about?! Do you mean the 'rep' that you've set by putting me in the line of fire while you and Richey find a nice hideout and watch the show? Well, I don't know about you, but I consider that pretty stupid. So yeah, I'm out." _I can't let them drag me around any longer._

"Alright, we'll make a deal. If you stay in this group, we'll lessen the pranks that you have to pull by a lot." _Well, there goes our wonderful reputation. Oh well, that just means the rest of the school will cower in fear when we walk down the hallways for nothing. If Paul isn't going to be putting up with the constant pranks, then we'll just have to stop pulling pranks because neither me nor Richard can pull those pranks. _

"What kind of lie are you telling me now?" Paul asked suspiciously.

"I'm not lying to you, Paul. I'm telling the truth. You stay with us and you'll pull less pranks." _Well, that's not exactly a lie, so it's the truth. I'm just not stating the truth, that's all._

"Well, the minute things go haywire, I'm leaving, is that understood?"

"Of course, Paul."

Paul nodded. "Alright, then I'll stay. I'm going to class now, so tell Richey I said what's up."

"Yeah, I will. I've got to get to class myself, so I don't know if I'll run into Richard on my way."

"That's fine with me. I just said if you see Richey tell him I said what's up."

"If I happen to run into him, I definitely will."

"Take it easy, man."

"You, too."

Paul and Dan walked in two different directions. Paul walked away with a lot on his mind, with the first thing being Ella. He still hadn't gotten over the fact that she had clumped him together with his no good friends. His friends were obnoxious. He knew that. But that was something that he would never say to their face or else he would be one dead boy. He walked slowly to class, trying to drag the time along so that he didn't have to spend an extra minute in the torture chambers of Spanish class.

He heard someone walking behind him, and figured it was just a teacher. He turned around to check, but he didn't see anyone. _It's probably my imagination acting up again._ He continued walking and heard the footsteps again.

"Goddamn it, who's there?!" Paul asked with an irritated tone.

Someone dressed in all black with a dark cap appeared.

"Who are you?" Paul asked firmly, but inside he was shaking.

"That's not your business." The voice was husky and rough. The figure slipped a hand inside his pocket and Paul watched nervously. _Is he going to take out a gun? _Paul watched with relief as the figure pull out a white piece of paper from his pocket. In a matter of seconds, the piece of paper was at his feet. "Read that if you know what's good for you." The voice said before the figure disappeared.

Paul watched the figure leave and stared at the piece of paper anxiously. _This might be a trick…_Paul debated with himself as to whether or not he should take a look at the piece of paper. Finally, he picked it up and put it in his back pocket. _I'll read it in class._ Paul walked into class quietly and took his seat in the back of the room. The bell rang a few seconds later.

"Ok class; please take out your homework." The teacher said. Paul took out his homework and his binder and put the note in front of it. While the teacher was still on the other side of the room checking people's homework, he read the note:

'Hello, Paul. I'm sure you're wondering about my identity as you read this note, but I assure you, that is none of your business. We have no intention of causing harm to you. We don't intend to kill you or anything. Although the appearance of me might be a bit intimidating, don't be alarmed. It was just a way to hide my identity. Anyway, the word that's going around the school is that you might be ditching the little group that you're in because you're sick and tired of the behavior of your friends. Well, Paul, if they really and truly were your friends, they wouldn't force you to be doing things against your will. It was smart of you to stand up to them for the first time in your life. I also heard about your stupid little prank that you played on a girl. I think her name was Ella. She's a nice girl and I don't appreciate you picking on her. So, if you know what's good for you, you will stop picking on people like Ella. What have they done to you that they deserve this treatment? They've done nothing to you and you should be returning the favor. Until next time. Anonymous.'


	5. Chapter 5

Paul read the note a few times before fear actually took a firm hold on him

Paul read the note a few times before fear actually took a firm hold on him. Who was this? He didn't want to get into any trouble with anyone. _Well, as far as I'm concerned, this person doesn't appreciate me hanging around Ella. So that means it's just a jealous guy who saw me with Ella and doesn't want Ella's love to direct to me. Well, they're lucky. Ella won't love me anytime soon. So, the next time I see him, I'll tell him the situation and hopefully the whole thing will be cleared out. _

"Are you paying attention, Paul?" The teacher seemed to notice Paul's temporary distraction.

"Um…yeah, I am."

"Good, now what is the answer to the question I just asked?"

"Um…the literary term is theme?" Paul took a wild guess.

"Correct. Next time, try to pay better attention in class."

"I will. Sorry."

As Paul sat through his lit class, he kept thinking about his new enemy. Even after the bell rang, he barely heard it. "Hey, the class is over!" Someone told him, shaking him out of his nightmare.

"Oh…yeah, I'll be going right now." Paul said so that no one would suspect anything.

As Paul hurried out of class, he was shoved into the boy's bathroom. "Hello Paul. I assume you've read my note." The husky voice said.

"Yeah…I read it in class. Would you mind lessening the dramatic effects and whatnot? I mean, seriously, this is school, not some horror show."

"Do you think I care? All I'm trying to say is…stay away from Ella because she doesn't deserve to be treated the way you've been treating her."

"Wait, I think you've got the wrong idea. If you're jealous of me, then we can definitely fix things up. Ella won't ever love me because of what I've done to her. So, Ella is all yours if you want to win her heart." _Good, the minute he hears this news, he'll reveal his identity to Ella and I'll find out who he is!_

"Do you think that I'm here out of jealousy? I'm not that kind of person. Besides, I don't even like Ella, at least not in the way that you're talking about. I just want to make sure that she won't be humiliated and hurt again the way you've been humiliating and hurting her."

"I wasn't trying to hurt her on purpose. I just wanted everyone to see it all as one big joke."

"A **joke**?? Is that what you call it?! You think it was all just a little joke that everyone can take lightly?! Have you ever been in a situation that you just put poor Ella in?"

"Well, no, not really, and Ella made me realize that. But still, I don't think that you had to take it to such extreme measures and dress up like the Grim Reaper."

"I'm not here to listen to your sarcastic remarks. I have no time for that. Just listen here. I don't want you hanging out with Ella and I definitely don't want you plotting against Ella with your two no good friends. Do you understand me?"

"Yeah, but…"

"There will be no excuses because I am in charge here. You will stay away from Ella at all costs. Is that understood?"

"Yeah, but I don't even know who you are."

"My identity will be revealed to you when I feel like revealing it to you. As of now, you don't deserve to see the light of day, but of course I'm not going to kill you considering this is a school and everyone needs their education, unfortunately including the worst of kids."

"I'm not the worst of kids. Actually, if you know me at all, I'm actually a nice guy."

"That's what they all say. They all say, oh, I'm such an angel. But they're not because they treat other people like shit and I don't think I'm going stand for the injustice that takes place in this school. The Board of Education might not be willing to do anything about it, so I take it as an opportunity to make sure everyone in this school is treated just as equally as everybody else."

"That's not your job! That's the job of the principal and vice principal, not some measly student!"

"Yeah, I know, but do you see any figures of authority roaming around trying to make sure everything is ok? Of course you don't, because they don't care what happens in this school as long as no one sues them."

"That's not true! They just don't have time! They don't have time to be running around yelling at every single kid that they think aren't being nice! In case you haven't noticed, this is high school, not elementary school. In elementary school, all the little kids yell and punch and kick. But this is high school, and we're supposed to be mature now. So that's why you don't see teachers and other authority figures walking around screaming at people."

"Well, if we're supposed to be so doggone mature, then why do the same things that happen in elementary school happen in high school? If we were honestly mature, this school would run a lot more smoothly then it is now."

"The way this school runs isn't the Board of Education's fault! It's the students' fault for being unable to control their behavior. You have absolutely no right to be blaming our administration for the way things are in this school."

"Well, the administration is the one that's supposed to be controlling everyone! What do you think school is for? Who do you think is responsible if anything happens? The administration, that's who! Now, don't be such a knucklehead. Leave Ella alone, or else I will come find you and then you won't be a very happy person. So, I suggest you hurry along to class and if you happen to see Ella, I advise you not to stop and talk to her, no matter what the circumstances. The only excuse that I will give you is if Ella comes up to talk to you. But don't you worry. I will have several spies placed all around the school to ensure Ella's safety and well-being. That's right, Paul. Unlike you, I actually care about Ella. We don't want her to be hurt again. So hurry up, Paul. You've got only 3 minutes to march your way clear to the other side of the building."

"You know, most people introduce themselves before threatening them."

"Do I appear to be normal to you?"

"Well, no, I guess not. Anyway, I'm going to get to class now. I don't think I'm willing to spend any more time than necessary with a freak like you."

"I would agree. Now, remember what I said with your interaction with Ella. It is prohibited at all costs, except if Ella talks to you first, which would be highly unlikely. Have a good day, and try not to figure out my identity. You would be wasting your time because there's no way in hell that you would be smart enough to uncover my identity. My information is hidden from you."

"Oh don't worry. No system that exists on earth is foolproof, including yours. Even if it takes me a while to figure it out, I will be able to identify you."

"Yeah, have fun with that."

Paul gave the person a sour look before turning around to leave.


	6. Chapter 6

As Paul was leaving, he saw Ella with Allison walking down the hallway and laughing

As Paul was leaving, he saw Ella with Allison walking down the hallway and laughing. He wanted to go over there and say hi, but he remembered the person's threat. He said that he had spies all over the school. _I'm not sure why I'm buying all that bullshit, but for some reason, it sounded pretty real to me._

Ella saw Paul walking her way and ignored him. She turned to Ally and continued talking to her. "So anyway, like I was saying…"

Paul took a deep breath and decided to take the chance. _I don't care who's watching me. I want to talk to Ella. It's called freedom of speech. I don't care if I get killed the very next day. At least I'll die knowing that Ella would have forgiven me. If I die tomorrow but never talk to Ella, then I will be a troubled soul._ He looked around to see if anyone looked suspicious and saw nobody.

"Hey Ella. What's up?"

"Why are you talking to me? I thought I told you a long time ago to leave me alone and never talk to me again. I said that we would see each other in the hallways, but that was not an invitation to talk." _When is he ever going to learn? My God, boys are so stupid sometimes!_

"Yeah, so why don't you just keep on walking?" Ally was clearly on Ella's side.

Paul looked from one girl to the other. He wasn't going to be winning this argument. "I just stopped by to say hi. Is that a crime?"

"Well, it's not a government law, but in **my** book, you just committed a crime. So keep on walking before I beat the living daylights out of you!"

Ella smiled at the violence that Ally could show. "Relax, Ally. I don't think he can do too much anyway."

"That's a good point, and I'm pretty sure that's true, but he shouldn't be showing his face anywhere near us!"

"Ally, like I said, chill. Just keep walking, don't look back, and don't say anything. He'll get the hint. I mean, as stupid and ignorant as he is, he'll get the point that we don't want anything to do with him." Ella remained calm, something that she could do well no matter what the situation was after years of practice.

Ally glared at Paul before agreeing. Before Paul could do anything about it, Ella and Allison had already turned the corner and disappeared.

_She was just lucky that Ally was there to protect her. Next time, I'll catch her without Ally by her side and then maybe things will go a bit more smoothly. As for that weird Grim Reaper-looking guy, I guess he lied. I'm still in one piece and nobody's come out to kill me yet. _Paul looked around to make sure no one was standing there watching. Satisfied, he started walking to class.

"Hello, Paul. I see you've broken my rules." The person seemingly appeared out of nowhere.

"Wait…where did you come from?!"

"That is none of your business. What matters is that we had an agreement and you didn't follow the rules of our agreement. The agreement was I would stop creeping you out and bothering you as long as you leave Ella alone. Now, according to one of my little spies, you talked to Ella and she wasn't the one to start the conversation."

"Spies? What spies? There were no spies around! There were just a bunch of students trying to hurry their way to class."

"Did you think that the people who help me will have my appearance as well? Well, you must be stupider than you look!"

"Would you stop with all this drama and the creepiness?! It's seriously getting on my nerves and truthfully, I don't really give a crap about what **you**__want! We don't share lives, you idiot, and that means you have absolutely no right to control my thoughts, words, and actions. So from now on, I don't want to see the likes of you again because it's tiring and childish!"

"Is that the tone you use with a stranger? Well, then many people already must be out to kill you because normally, people remain polite no matter what happens."

"Excuse me, but the last time I checked, YOU WERE HERE BEFORE!! So that means you're no stranger!"

"Fine, I'm going to ask you just three questions about me and let's see if you get them correct. If you answer them correctly, I will leave you alone and you can do whatever you want because you are so goddamn smart. But if you answer them _in_correctly, then I will take the pleasure of annoying you. Is that clear?"

"You bet." Paul didn't stop to think that he knew absolutely nothing about this person. He was too mad.

"Alright, then. The first question: What is my name?"

"Um…I don't know…"

"Interesting. Second question: Am I male or female?"

"Um…male…I think."

"And you say you're smart…and last question: What grade am I in?"

"Um…same grade as me?"

"Well, for someone who thinks they're so smart, you aren't as grand as you make yourself seem!"

"What do you mean? I got one of the questions right!"

"Oh really? Which one? I must have missed it."

"You're a guy…right?"

"Maybe, and maybe not. I'll be seeing you around…and very often. Good day."

Paul watched the person leave. _There is something awfully familiar about that guy…but it just can't put my finger on exactly what…_

"Hey Paul!" Dan shouted from behind him.

Startled, Paul turned around. "Jesus, Dan, one of these days you're going to give me a heart attack."

"Haha…scared you, didn't I?"

"Well, take a wild guess. I told you that one of these days you're going to give me a heart attack and I jumped when you called my name. What do you think?"  
"I enjoy doing that to you. Hey, have you seen someone dressed in all black lately?"

"Yeah, actually, they just left a few seconds ago. Why?"

"Because some weird creepy guy told me not to mess with Ella…does that sound familiar to you?"

"Yeah…really familiar. The guy told me to the exact same thing. Apparently, I'm not allowed to talk to Ella if she doesn't talk to me first."

"Oh…I'm not allowed to talk to Ella or bother her or pull pranks on her or tell anybody to pull pranks on her."

"Well, whoever the person is, he knows an awful lot about us, and it's kind of scaring me."

"Same here. I don't like knowing that someone I don't even know has so much information about me. He even knows things that I've only told you and Richard!"

"You mean about your…elementary school life?"

"Yeah…my painful years."

"Oh my God…I'm scared out of my wits. I don't know what to do and I don't know what to expect. What's a worse combination than that?"

"I agree. That creepy weirdo is getting on my nerves, but the one time that I snapped at him, he gave me a whole lot of BS about strangers and politeness and whatnot."

"Same thing happened to me. He sounded really mad and then he just walked away after asking me a bunch of questions."

"Whatever. This is creeping me out and personally, I don't appreciate being bothered and harassed by someone I don't even know!"

"Yeah, well who does?"

You've got a point. Hey, did you see Ella just now?"

"Well, I saw her with her best friend Allison. Allison was giving me a hard time about messing with Ella but that's Allison for you. She protects anybody and everybody. Once, she protected some little kid that lives on my block because I was about to give the little kid flat tires on her bike."

"Yeah…Allison's cute when she gets mad."

"Ew…I no longer know you!"

"Well, what about you? The way you hang around Ella as much as you can, I'm starting to think you like her."

"I don't like her! I just want to apologize for being such an ass to her!"

"Aw…how cute! You want to say sorry to a girl because you were a bad boy. Aw…how cute!"

"Shut up! I don't like Ella! I just want to get this burden off my shoulders and to get rid of that creepy dude. He said that as long as I don't bother Ella, he'll get out of my life permanently. So, I'm just going to apologize and then hope that he won't come back."

"Dude, I can see right through you. You like Ella and you're afraid to admit it!"

"I do not!! She's the **last** person that I would like!"

"Dude, you're such a bad liar. Stop trying. I can tell if people are lying, and right now, you're lying. You know as well as well as I do that a certain Ella Stanton charms you and you're just denying it."

Paul lost his temper. "Listen, Dan, I **don't **like Ella! That's the truth, whether you want to believe it or not! Now, you better just leave me alone because you're just as bad as that creepy weirdo."

"Whatever. You're getting defensive over a girl that you 'don't like' so that means you really do like her. Don't say anything back at me…I've got class to go to. See you around!"

Before Paul could say something back, Dan had already left him. _Of course I don't like Ella…she's not my type. Besides, she's below me…she's not worth my time. No! I'm thinking like Dan! I won't let myself go to that level! She's…not as popular as I am…so that means we just don't match. I don't like her…do I? Of course I don't! Why am I doubting myself? Ella's just some girl that I accidentally was extra mean to and now I just want to apologize and then after that I'm going to leave her alone and we'll never meet again. Ha! That'll show Dan the truth: I don't like Ella…not even as a friend. Now, the only problem is, how am I supposed to find Ella without my life being in danger?_


	7. Chapter 7

Paul sighed and went on his way to his next class. _Maybe I'll use this class as some time to think. I'm passing History with flying colors anyway, so why should I pay attention? I'll ask someone for the notes after class and since this teacher is so naïve I'll be able to trick her into thinking I'm still as hardworking as ever. Wow, I really am an awesome schemer, just like Dan said! No! Can't think like Dan! Dan is my friend, but he's not someone that I should look to as a role model! _ Paul shook his head and walked into the classroom, where he spent the next hour wondering how to apologize to Ella without having that…thing stalk him.

Finally, when the bell rang, he walked out, still a bit absent-minded.

"Hey, Paul, what's up? You look like you've seen a ghost or something." Dan called.

"Huh? Oh, right. I've been through some…rough patches lately and I guess I haven't recovered." Paul said. _If only you knew the truth. I've seen something close to a ghost. Some weirdo dressed in all black has already claimed my life if I were to go and talk to Ella again, but what would you know? You'd probably tell me that it's all in my imagination and laugh. _Paul thought silently to himself, glad that Dan couldn't hear him.

"What, still thinking about that girl again? What's her name now? Ella, is it?" Dan mocked.

"Yeah…Ella's her name, and would you quit acting as if I'm some kind of stalker or whatever? I'm not flirting with Ella, if that's what you're trying to point out." Paul was getting into a worse mood with every second that he had to spend talking with his so-called best bud. _You see? Every time we talk, we're talking about how much I 'like' Ella, but I don't like her. Unlike you, I actually have a conscience and it's bothering me. What about yours, you no good jerk? You don't even have a conscience and you're complaining about me? Man, I think that you'll be rotting in hell while I'm going to enjoy the nice little paradise called heaven. _

"Whatever, man. I've got a class to go to. Unlike you, I actually give a crap about how I do academically. So if you don't mind, I'll be leaving."

He heard Dan snicker behind him. This time Paul snapped. "What's so funny?!" He demanded.

Dan shrugged innocently but kept the smug look on his face. "Nothing's _funny_. It's just that I can't believe you're still unwilling to admit that you kind of like Ella. You can't honestly tell me that after chasing after her every second that you get you still have the guts to tell me that you don't have the tiniest bit of feeling left for her?"

"Yes, I can." Paul said firmly. _What do you know? All you're looking for is drama. When something seems to be even the slightest bit of dramatic, you pounce on that opportunity immediately. I don't like Ella, Dan, and if you would just observe a bit closer, you would see that for yourself._

Without saying another word, Dan and Paul, who had always been 'the best of friends, walked off in opposite directions. In the meantime, the same person that had been bothering Paul earlier that day had been watching. The person left silently without another word.

Ella and Allison were walking together, laughing and gossiping. Allison turned and nudged Ella in the ribs. "Hey, look behind us. It's Dork and company."

Ella turned to see what Allison was talking about. "Well, do you want to take the chance and try to lose them?"

"Nah, I say we play games with them. Slow down a bit. We'll let them catch up. Come on, slow down."

Ella reluctantly agreed. Sure enough, Paul soon found himself walking beside Ella. "Hey." He greeted, still trying to catch his breath after walking so fast.

Ella nodded in acknowledgement. "Hi." She replied.

"Listen, I know you don't want to see me or hear my voice again, but I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be such a jerk to you. So let me make this up to you and treat you to supper or dinner tonight?"

Ella and Allison exchanged a look. "Sure," Allison said for Ella. "but I think I'll tag along. You know, just to watch out for Ella. You know Ella. She's so clumsy and whatnot, she needs someone to make sure she doesn't trip over a stone or something stupid like that." She shot Ella a look, warning her to just play along. Ella nodded slightly, but not enough for Paul to notice.

"That's cool. I'll invite Dan and we could double."

"Sounds good to me. See you at 7 then."

"Alright, see you."

The minute Paul had his back turned, Ella glared at Allison. "Now I demand an explanation. What have you been smoking lately? Cocaine? Marijuana? Do you even realize what you just did?"

Allison laughed. "My God, girl, you are so tense over everything. You've got to get some taste of the society. You've been locked up in your house so long, you might as well find a job where you don't have to get your butt out of your bed."

Ella nodded. "Yeah…that's funny. But my dad and stepmother need taking care of and…"

Allison cut that sentence off with a wave of her hand. "Oh, save it, Ella. You're just finding excuses so that you could cancel tonight. But no worries, El, we're going together and that means Paul won't have the time to bother you, alright?"

"I have nothing to wear. I mean, I'm not exactly the type of girl that goes shopping 24/7."

"You can just borrow a bunch of my clothes. I know you appreciate my taste, and I have tons of clothes that my mom's always on my back about. So how about it? I'll go over at 5."

Ella shook her head. "No, I'll meet you at your place at half past 5."

"Stalling, are you? Well, that doesn't bother me. Just don't be late, ok?"

Ella nodded unwillingly. She had no idea how she was supposed to get out of her house without getting in trouble for going out with a guy. She took a deep breath and tried to think of a decent lie, but came up with nothing. Paul appeared next to her before she knew what was going on. "Hey, you look somewhat disappointed about tonight? Do you think I'm that bad as company?"

Ella looked at him to see if he was serious. What was he thinking? Of course she thought that he was bad company! Had he forgotten what happened earlier that morning? Humiliation was just something that Ella could not stand. "Um…well, nervous, I guess." She said softly.

"I'm guessing it's your first time too?"

"Uh…yeah, it is. I stay at home most of the time."

"Well, no worries. I won't be able to do anything with that tomboy you've got as a best friend."

Ella glared at him. "I beg your pardon? Ally's not a tomboy. Wait till tonight, you'll see that she's as much a girl as…as me, I guess."

"Oh…sorry if I offended you. Well, do you mind if I walk you to class?" Paul asked hopefully. _She hasn't snapped me in half yet, and I shouldn't be pushing my luck, but still…wait, what am I doing?! Why am I suddenly so anxious to get her to go out with me?! Maybe Dan was right. Maybe I do like her. No! I can't be wrong! I'm NEVER wrong! _Paul watched Ella's face carefully, watching for any signs of anger or irritation, but he found none. _Maybe it's time to face facts. I think I __**have**__ fallen for her. But what's NOT to love about this girl? She's sweet, sensible, and not that bad-looking. But what am I supposed to be do about Dan? What was I thinking when I invited him?! Man, I'm so stupid sometimes. Maybe I'll just drag Jeff into this. He would love to hang with Ally, considering that crush that he's had on her since he saw her. I'll just say that Dan suddenly backed out of the date like the jerk he is. Yeah! Now that's a good plan! I'm back to my old self again! Wait, did Ella just say something to me? Man, I really should stop having these random mental qualms in the middle of conversations. _"Huh?" he asked, as if he hadn't heard her the first time.

"I said that I appreciate you trying to be nice, and I accept your apologies, but I'm afraid that after tonight's dinner, we won't be seeing much of each other again. No offense or anything, but I'm not really into you. At least not in the way that you're into me. Sorry. I've got a class to go to. Please don't bother me again."

Ella turned and headed for class, leaving Paul very shocked and disappointed behind her.


	8. Chapter 8

Paul stared after Ella, mouth open in shock. "What in the world did I do to deserve this treatment?" He wondered aloud. Dan heard him and snickered. "Aww...looks like you precious Elly baby didn't want to double with you. Too bad, though, because it's not like I'm going to lay low while I watch you fail to capture Ella's heart?"

Paul glared at him suspiciously. "What do you mean by that?"

Dan shrugged innocently. "I'm just saying that I am the leader of this gang, aren't I? Well, in order to make sure that everyone knows that I'm in charge, I've got to do something that you suckers can't."

"So you're saying that if I don't get Ella to date me, you're going to go after her as well?"

"What a clever little boy you are, Paulie! Well, good luck, because you need it! With my amazingly good looks and charm, I can't fail when the issue at stake is women!"

Paul wanted to argue, but he didn't. He knew that Dan was right. It didn't matter what Paul tried to do. Ella would never fall for someone like him in a million years. However, Dan had all the charm that it took to steal a girl's heart. It was just that he was a real jerk and sometimes, he just thought too much of himself. _Maybe, just maybe, Ella won't like Dan. Maybe she'll reject Dan just as she rejected me._

Paul turned to go to class. This time, he paid attention. He needed something to take his attention off the issue outside of class. But he was thoroughly surprised when the teacher stopped him after class and handed him a sheet of paper that looked like a contest sheet. When Paul gave his teacher a questioning look, the teacher smiled. "Read it. I'm pretty sure you can do it and win with flying colors. Good luck." Without another word, she left.

Paul looked at the sheet in front of him. It was a contest, alright. It was some sort of writing competition. Up to now, he had always thought of his writing as average and not so great. But now, as he read over the rules and regulations, he had second thoughts. Then an idea crept into his mind. Maybe, just maybe, this could be the one thing that will get Ella to go out with him. He knew his chances were slim, but he had to try.

He rushed down the hall, scanning the halls for Ella or her tomboyish best friend Allison. To his delight and relief, he saw that Ella was alone at her locker.

"Hey!" Paul called, waving the paper in the air like some sort of prize. "Hey! Ella!" He shouted.

Ella looked up. _Oh no. Not him again._ She stood up and locked her locker. "What? I thought I told you to back off and never talk to me again."

"Well, yes, you did. But I've got some good news! Look! You know that really annoying writing teacher that always smiles and seems to have nothing better to do? Well, she thought that I have what it takes to enter a writing contest!" The words rushed out of his mouth excitedly.

"Wow, really?" Ella was shocked. _Well, well, well, I guess he isn't as stupid as he looks. _She took the sheet of paper and read it over. "That's pretty cool."

"Yeah, well, I was thinking maybe we could work on something together. Like, think of some fabulous story to submit together. And if I win, I promise I'll give you credit."

Ella looked at him suspiciously. "I warned you..."

Paul interrupted her with a wave of her hand. "Yeah, yeah. You don't want to go out with me. But I'm not asking you to go out with me. I'm asking you to work with me, as a friend. So, what do you say?"

Ella thought for a while before saying "Alright, I guess that's an ok idea."

"Awesome! I'll come by your house to pick you up at like 3 in the afternoon tomorrow."

"Uh...not tomorrow. I'm quite busy. We'll brainstorm today right after school. But only for a few hours."

"Ok, I'm flexible."

Ella smiled politely and nodded. "I'm going to class now." She said, and walked away.

Paul smiled to himself as well. _Yes! Looks like I've completed step one. Maybe if things work out in my favor, everything will be alright, and Ella will not only be my friend, but my girlfriend as well. God, please answer my prayers and make Ella mine!_


	9. Chapter 9

Paul waited anxiously for the final bell to ring. When it finally did, he jumped out of his seat and was the first to be out of the classroom. He walked quickly to where Ella would be, and walked at a more leisurely and casual pace when he saw her.

"Oh, hey Ella." Paul pretended to be surprised at the coincidence. "So, are you going to your locker first, or are you going straight to the buses? I'm going to follow you home, if that's alright with you. That way we can head out right after we're finished."

"We're supposed to head over to Ally's house first. She's going to be my wardrobe for the day. Listen, maybe we can do this writing contest some other day. I just remembered that I'm really busy today. Maybe some time next week we can meet up somewhere during lunch."

"I was looking forward to working with you today, though. I mean, I even have a vague idea of what I want my writing piece to be. We could develop that idea into a masterpiece together. Then the whole school would know about it and…" Paul stopped, realizing that he was about to say 'and we would be popular.'

"I know, and I'm sorry for this last minute cancellation, but we can't work on this today. It'll have to wait until sometime next week. Besides, the thing's due in like 3 months. You've got plenty of time. The buses are here. I'm going to leave now. I'll see you later." Ella said as she started to walk away.

Paul halfheartedly raised a hand to say goodbye and sighed. _I don't know what's wrong with me. I fell for the wrong girl. I shouldn't be so nice to her. I'm never nice to girls. I hate to admit it, but I think Dan's right. I'm completely in love with Ella. But I can't let Dan have her! He'll only hurt her in every way possible! That means I'm going to have to step up my game a little bit. Tonight's date will go wonderfully well for me, and I'll win Ella's heart by the end of our date._

**When Ella gets home:**

"Helen, I'm home. I'll be right up with your snack as soon as I get everything ready." Ella called.

"Make it fast, you little brat! Are you **trying** to starve me to death??"

"No ma'am. I'll be as quick as I possibly can."

"Ha! I'll be here for _ages_ if it's as fast as _you_ can."

"Yes, ma'am. I'm a rather slow person. I agree with you. I could never live up to your standards, and that's what makes you a great role model." Ella lied. She hated her life and couldn't wait to get out of her house.

When Ella eventually went upstairs with her rotten stepmother's meal, Helen snapped at her. "I was hungry like an hour ago! Now, you can hear my stomach growling! Are you trying to kill me? I want to live to a ripe old age, understood, and that means

When Ella eventually went upstairs with her rotten stepmother's meal, Helen snapped at her. "I was hungry like an hour ago! Now, you can hear my stomach growling! Are you trying to kill me? I want to live to a ripe old age, understood, and that means _you_ have to take better care of me! Now come here and receive your discipline."

Ella got down on her knees while Helen went to get her wooden rod. She closed her eyes and bowed her head, waiting for the pain. She yelped when the wooden rod made contact harshly with her back.Tears sprang to her eyes the more the wooden rod whipped her back multiple times, each blow harder than the one before it.

"Now, tell me. HAVE YOU LEARNED YOU LESSON??" Helen roared.

Still shaking, Ella replied. "Y-yes ma'am. I'm sorry I'm such a klutz." She got up, tearing with the pain that came with the action, and walked out of the room. She went into her room and inspected the damage. There was a huge bruise in the middle of her back and she was bleeding. She picked up the phone and called Allison. "Hey Allison? Uh…when you pick something out for me tonight, make sure it's nothing backless, ok?"

"Oh yeah, sure. I know how much it would _kill_ you to wear something so sexy."

"You know me so well. Anyways, I've got homework to catch up on. I'll see you in a couple hours." As she hung up, she miserably pressed her face against her pillow and cried. Someone knocked on her door.

Immediately, Ella stopped crying. No one ever knocked on her door in this house. Her dad and Helen always said that privacy was a privilege that kids took advantage of.

"Ella? Hey, I'm sorry to bug you, but I had this amazing idea and…Ella? Are you okay?" Paul's voice drifted in.

Ella gasped with surprise, immediately regretting doing so as she felt the sharp pain in her back. "Uh…yeah, I'm fine. What are you doing at my house, and how in the world do you know where I live?"

"Well, the school's handbook wasn't made for just the parents you know. I use it sometimes to look up some people's addresses and my mom gave me a ride here. As for you saying you're fine, you don't look like you're just fine."

"What would you know? Now get out of my house before…wait a second, who let you into the house?" Ella realized that Helen would never open the door and let some boy in without making a racket about it and her dad wasn't even home.

"Oh, your back door was open and I just came in." Paul shrugged as if it wasn't uncommon for him to do things like that.

"Are you out of your mind?" Ella sat up quickly, ignoring the searing pain as she did so.

"I think so. I don't usually come over to girls' houses, just my friends' houses."

Ella rolled her eyes and pulled her blanket over her knees. "Now that you're here, what do you want? I hope you had a pretty good reason for this."

"Oh, but I do. Remember when I told you that I had a vague idea for my writing piece at school? Well, now that idea is really clear and I think it's a really good one, but I wanted to run it by you first to see if you liked it."

"It's _your_ writing piece. Why would you need my permission to use that idea?"

"That's where you're wrong. It's not _my_ writing piece. It's _our_ writing piece. We're _both_ working on this."

Ella rolled her eyes again and shook her head. "Whatever. I need my rest now, so go away, _please._"

She swung her legs in front of her, not seeing the book that Paul had put there. She lost control of her body and fell forward. Just as she thought she would hit the floor hard, Paul caught her, wrapping his arms around her waist and forcing her into a position where she had to wrap her arms around his neck.

"Whoa…are you okay? Sorry about that." Paul said casually as he helped Ella back into a sitting position.

Ella smiled politely and nodded her head. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm really very tired right now, so could you please leave? You know, _before_ I trip over something else?"

Paul stared back at her in confusion. _Is she mad at me? Does she think I put that book there on purpose so I could touch her? Who does she think I am?! I'm not __**that**__ desperate to get her attention! _"Uh…yeah…well, um…I guess I'll…I'll see you later then, ok?" he managed to stammer as he got up. His eyes still searched her face for some kind of explanation. "I'll…I'll be going now…uh…I…I guess I'll be seeing you for dinner, then…um…yeah, bye." He could barely talk normally in his state of confusion. He watched Ella's face the entire time, hoping she would ask him to stay if he wanted. When she didn't Paul silently left the room, still in a state of shock.

Ella let out a breath and went back to her original position with her face against the pillow and let the tears fall. She didn't hear the door creak open silently and the soft thud as the door closed again. She didn't hear the footsteps approaching her as she cried. So she was surprised when she felt a gentle hand wrap itself around her shoulders. Trying to stop her tears, she turned her face to see who it was. She stared in surprise at Paul, who was looking back at her with a somewhat hurt expression on his face.

"You said you were fine." He stated. It wasn't an accusation or question. He was just stating a fact. His eyes held hers.

Ella looked away and shook his hand off. "I am. I just cry sometimes. Girls are more prone to tears than guys are."

"So you're crying because you're upset I caught you? Well, I'm sorry, but I don't think you would be too happy with me if I just sat back and watched you fall."

Ella didn't answer and hid her face in the pillow. Paul watched her for a few minutes and sat on the floor next to her bed. "You play the piano?" He said finally.

Ella looked up. "Why?"

"I don't know. I'm just asking. There's a piano in your room and it looks like it hasn't been touched in ages."

"I just got it tuned yesterday, but I haven't played in a while."

"Do you mind if _I_ play around with it for a while?"

"Sure, why not?"

Ella closed her eyes and fell asleep to Paul's really bad version of Mary Had a Little Lamb.


End file.
